Jill Schramm/MDN Rep. Jeff Hoverson speaks to the Ward County Commission Wednesday.

Ward County commissioners filed away a resolution banning COVID-19 vaccine mandates after giving it an airing Wednesday.

The commission’s decision to acknowledge then file two slightly different resolution drafts meant no action was taken on either, although commissioners could decide to act at another time. The item had been tabled for several weeks from the time of its introduction by Rep. Jeff Hoverson, R-Minot, in August.

The two resolutions presented Wednesday both resolved the county will not enforce any mask or vaccine mandate on residents or support or enforce any attempt by private businesses to enact government mandates. They express the county’s intent to oppose all laws, mandates, rules or orders pertaining to medical treatments or attempts at COVID-19 risk mitigation made by governments. One resolution adds opposition to those same efforts made by private businesses.

Any entity receiving county tax reductions or subsidies that attempts to violate the resolution may be subject to revocation of those benefits, the resolutions state.

Hoverson framed his argument around individual liberty.

“Liberty in our country is a political system, actually, that historically outperforms government intervention and especially tyranny,” he said. “Had the government stayed out of this, this past couple of years, and let liberty do its job — individual liberty– this pandemic would have been over a long time ago. Once we begin giving up liberty. It takes a long time, if ever, to get it back.

“This very issue is really high in our community,” he added. “It’s a very high concern of people. They just want their freedom.”

Hoverson noted several bills are being proposed for introduction during the North Dakota Legislature’s special session in November that address vaccine mandates.

Lisa Clute, executive director at First District Health Unit, mentioned the opt-out provision for mandated school vaccines, although COVID-19 is not among those existing mandated vaccines.

First District also mandates vaccines for staff.

“We are the responding entity to any communicable disease, and so our staff are made aware when they’re in the interview process that there are certain vaccinations that they need to have,” Clute said. “This would negate the ability to do that, as well as any healthcare and responding entity.

“The bottom line is this has been a tremendously difficult almost two years that we have been dealing with this, and I think everybody has been faced with difficult decisions. I think those decisions are best left to the businesses and organizations that are trying to ensure that they have a healthy, active workforce to continue to respond,” she said.

Commissioner John Pietsch moved to file the resolutions without action.

“We feel that we’ve given everyone an opportunity to speak and say what they want to say. I think we’ve listened. I don’t particularly agree with you,” he told Hoverson. “But I think we’ve been honest and listened and made an attempt — given you an opportunity to present what you want to say.”

The commission previously had taken “receive and file” action on a petition seeking a Preservation Act supporting Second Amendment rights. The commission has submitted a request to the North Dakota Attorney General for a legal review of the Second Amendment and vaccine mandate documents but has not yet received a response.

Commission Chairman John Fjeldahl said the commission will decide whether to take up the two issues after hearing from the Attorney General.